The man of the hour, Machel Montano, was met with a monstrous reception when he finally hit the stage.
Stiffy joined Montano on stage as he urged patrons to ‘tek off something and pelt it way’.
2016 Party Monarch, Lil Rick, closed off the local performances with his winning tune, ‘I’za Bajan’.
‘One Love’ worth the wait
Tue, 08/02/2016 - 12:00am
By:
Michael Phillips
Despite having to wait till after midnight yesterday, the thousands of fans on-hand at the grounds of the Concorde Experience left feeling satisfied. Coming out in droves to take in one of the highlights of the 2016 season, the One Love concert put on by Volume Entertainment Group, patrons thirsted for a taste of Machel Montano and ‘Monk Monté’ and they did not disappoint.
With a slated showtime of 7 p.m., DJs held sway till just around 9:30 p.m. when the local acts hit the stage. The likes of People’s Monarch Marvay, King Bubba, Seth Xcel Bovell, Marzville, Stiffy, Peter Ram and 2016 Party Monarch Lil Rick got the live performances off the ground as they stirred up the crowd with some of their hits from this year as well as years past. After the performers finished, DJs resumed control, but failed to keep the buzz alive as well over an hour wore on before Montano and his entourage took to the stage.
It was not till well after midnight that Montano hit the stage, but the previous lull was hardly felt as fans ate up hit after hit put down by the man of the hour and The HD Family. Always known to bring a little something extra to his performances outside of backing band and troupe of high-energy dancers, this year’s edition of One Love saw Montano dragging along St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ Skinny Fabulous, and Angela Hunte and Vice from Trinidad and Tobago to perform some of their popular songs. One of the highlights of the night was Montano’s introduction and endorsement of Bashment Soca King Stiffy and Marzville as they performed their massive hits in his set. Also of note were performances by Nigerian acts Runtown and Wizkid, who is the first Nigerian artiste to hit the Billboard charts.
Before Montano took the show down the home stretch, he featured a small segment where he utilised the reggae and dancehall music of some legendary and contemporary Jamaican artistes such as Beres Hammond and Bob Marley, and Dexta Dapps and Damian Marley to bridge the gap between the over and under 25s in the audience. Despite a small number of complaints about logistics surrounding the event, One Love 2016 received rave reviews for a top-level show.